Very little to show for majorities in Raleigh, DC
In Raleigh, there have been GOP majorities controlling The General Assembly since 2010. Democrats have little to no say as to what happens there.
So, it is truly stunning that the concepts of fiscal conservatism and smaller government are such a bitter pill to swallow over there on Jones Street. These people ran for office — and won — on a party platform that pledges fiscal conservatism and smaller government. Yet, spending has been ballooning at the state level throughout the GOP era in Raleigh.
This GOP-controlled body is currently failing at the one primary job the assembly is tasked with: passing a budget. Budgets are due at the end of June. Here we are in mid-January and STILL NO BUDGET.
You can’t blame this on the Democrats. The GOP owns both chambers. In fact, Senate leadership (translation: Phil Berger) is said to actually run the state.
Yet, we understand passage of a budget is being held up by demands from Senate leadership (a/k/a Phil Berger) that a new multi-billion dollar children’s hospital AND more money for Medicaid are included. Yes, those are demands from REPUBLICANS.
At last check, there are at least eight existing dedicated children’s hospitals throughout the state. There are also lots more existing hospitals that treat adults and children. WHY do we need this brand new one? Why is it worth holding the state budget hostage?
And don’t get us started on Medicaid. Even Pat McCrory got this one right. He cautioned that Medicaid should not be considered for expansion until all the fraud was cleaned out. At one time, Phil Berger and Tim Moore opposed Medicaid expansion. Then, all of a sudden, they surrendered their powers as leaders of a majority to Roy Cooper so HE could expand Medicaid. During the most recent expansion, everyone was warned the expansion would demand even more money from state taxpayers. And here we are …
If all of that doesn’t piss you off, get a load of what’s happening (or, rather, not happening) in our Republican-controlled Congress in DC. Congressional leaders are working short weeks and taking long vacations while tons of Trump nominees sit unconfirmed.
Congress gave us one vote on one cut proposed by MAGA. The Trump White House cut a lot of other stuff via executive order. But without congressional action, Democrats can simply restore all of these DOGE-inspired cuts the next time they get back in control. Chuck Schumer told us this very week that’s their plan.
Social security is supposed to officially go belly-up in 2032. Six years from now.
Yet we keep reelecting these people.
A lot of the political class think MAGA is about Trump-worship. Plenty of establishment politicians think they can snow us by simply saying TRUMP a lot. What’s fueling MAGA is a frustration with the people in both parties who are choking the life out of our country and economy with wasteful borrowing and spending. Trump is merely a vehicle for expressing that frustration.
The lying-to-us part of all this is especially infuriating. Just tell us you have no serious interest in curbing spending and cutting government. *Then, sit back and watch what happens.*
MAGA is but the name transformation of the TeaParty IMO.